On Saturday, 18th April, Year 9 students set off to complete their final Assessment for Duke of Edinburgh for two days and one night. Having been through the practice before, pupils were tasked in navigating their way through various routes and paths across the Surrey hills, hiking for hours upon end to reach their final destination. Like last time, they were put in various groups in which they worked together throughout the whole trip to achieve a successful expedition.

This highly anticipated event marked the end of their journey to complete their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh course which the students had been tirelessly working towards for the last four months. Of course, a very special thank you must go to the BXM instructors, Mr Fox, Miss Mosdell and many more teachers for truly bringing this challenge to life.

Starting out, most pupils had learned from their mistakes from last time, so students were readily prepared – bring plenty of food and drink and confident in their map reading skills as they hastily trekked through forests, paths and even some busy roads.

Fortunately, unlike last time, the whole journey had been gifted with energising sunlight which unlike previously, the students suffered from intense rainfall and cold weather. Furthermore, many groups enncountered new paths and farms they had never discovered before, often having to taking risky yet thrilling paths through herds of cows, horses and many other farm animals!

By the end of evening, all pupils had successfully cooked their food and set up their tents brilliantly, giving them lots of spare time to take a break from the stressful side of Duke of Edinburgh. Many pupils played American football together on the open field whilst others wandered and talked together around the campsite – all culminating in a brilliant experience.

On the second day, unlike on the practice, students slept soundly and all groups had set off efficiently by 8am for the last stretch of the expedition.

Talking to students it was striking how many said that they loved to see all the wildlife. The weather was also much better compared to that experience during the practice which is what lead them to really enjoy this expedition and succeed.

As a participant, what stood out for me the most was the true teamwork and compassion pupils shared whilst working together and how they fixed their problems without much hassle. From a student’s point of view, the event highlighted just how successful a seemingly ordinary group of students can be and just how far they were willing to go to create unforgettable memories.

Overall, the event had taught students and teachers many life skills, whilst simultaneously opening their minds to become more curious and daring in the future and overall, to be content with the effort they had given.

• Xavier, Y9